Maybe we haven't seen the last of Jack Duquesne, aka Swordsman, following his Marvel Cinematic Universe debut in the Disney+ series Hawkeye. In that series, Tony Dalton made his MCU debut as Duquesne, a role that is vastly different from the devious villain he portrayed on Better Call Saul. But while Dalton enjoys playing the bad guy, he rather enjoyed his time in the MCU as the Swordsman role offered him a chance to do something different.
In a new interview with DiscussingFilm, Dalton addressed how he may have tricked some viewers with his casting in Hawkeye as Duquesne. Because the actor had garnered great acclaim for spending several seasons as a sinister murderer on Better Call Saul, he believes there may have been some expectations that he'd be the villain in Hawkeye as well, though this actually worked out for the best. Dalton compared the reveal that Duquesne is not the bad guy to Harrison Ford's role in Robert Zemeckis' What Lies Beneath.
“I would think my history with Lalo and with a whole bunch of other characters, I’ve been doing this for a while… four years playing a hitman so that doesn’t help to have a good image of your characters... Harrison Ford is always the good guy. But in that one, he’s the bad guy and you just don’t see that coming… I think they did the same thing in reverse [with Jack Duquesne].”
You can also count on Dalton to reprise the role if Marvel ever decides to call him back for a new project. The character is so different from Lalo Salamanca, Dalton's Saul villain, and that's what makes slipping back into the Swordsman role so appealing.
“Of course, I would do that role again. It was fun. It’s nice to be the good guy for a change... A completely different character than Lalo and it’s a whole different direction.”
Tony Dalton Was Better Call Saul's Most Vicious Antagonist
Tony Dalton did not make his debut in Better Call Saul until season 4, but it was not long before he quickly rose to become a standout member of the cast with his role as Lalo Salamanca. A part of the Salamanca family that has spent decades feuding with Gus Fring (Giancarlo Esposito), Lalo had proven to be the most dangerous threat to Gus yet. The villain was just as intelligent as he was homicidal and stands out as one of the most memorable TV villains of recent years.
Better Call Saul is ending this summer with just three episodes left of the AMC drama. That leaves Dalton with some openings in his schedule, and given the acclaim he has received from critics and fans for his role as Lalo Salamanca, we should be seeing the actor back on screen soon enough. If he gets his way, perhaps that will be with a return to the role of Jack in the Marvel Cinematic Universe to get more time as a hero.